RM-51

RM-51 multiple rocket launcher
RM-51 multiple rocket launcher
	RM-51 on display at the National Museum of Military History in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Type	Self-propelled multiple rocket launcher
Place of origin	Czechoslovak Socialist Republic
Service history
In service	1956-late 1990s
Used by	See users
Production history
Designer	Škoda, Zbrojovka Brno and VTÚ
Designed	1949-1956
Manufacturer	Škoda
Variants	vz. 51, M-51, R-2
Specifications
Mass	7.575 tonnes
Length	7 m (23 ft 0 in)
Width	2.38 m (7 ft 10 in)
Height	2.18 m (7 ft 2 in)
Crew	6
Caliber	Diameter: 130 mm (5.1 in); Length: .8 m (2 ft 7 in); Weight: 24.2 kg (53 lb)
Barrels	32 (4 rows)
Elevation	+50°/0°
Traverse	240° (120° left/right)
Rate of fire	32 rockets in 12.4 seconds (2 min. reloading time)
Muzzle velocity	420 m/s (1,400 ft/s)
Maximum firing range	8.2 km (5.1 mi)
Main; armament	ORNNG missiles with NZ-60V warhead
Suspension	6×6 wheeled
Maximum speed	40 km/h (25 mph) (road) ; 10 km/h (6.2 mph) (cross-country)

The RM-51 (Raketomet vzor 1951) multiple rocket launcher was a Czechoslovak army alternative of the BM-13 multiple rocket launcher developed in the 1950s.

Variants[]

Austria - 18 delivered in 1974, designated M-51.^[2]
Bulgaria - 24 delivered in 1963.^[3]
Democratic Republic of the Congo - 6 in service as of 2021.^[4]
Indonesia - In 2012, Indonesian Army retrofitted their RM-51, including replacing the original Praga V3S truck with Reo M35A2 truck.^[5]^[6]
Czechoslovakia
Cuba - 20 delivered between 1965-1966.^[3]
Egypt - 50 delivered between 1957-1958.^[3]
Libya - 36 delivered between 1976-1977.^[3]
Romania - 58 delivered between 1956-1965.^[3] Designated R-2,^[7] the launchers were later mounted on ZIL-157 trucks.^[8]

^ Foss, Christopher (1977). Jane's pocket book of towed artillery. New York: Collier. p. 157. ISBN 0020806000. OCLC 911907988.
^ "Bundesheer - TRUPPENDIENST - Ausgabe 1/2005 - Waffengattungen des Österreichischen Bundesheeres".
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
^ International Institute for Strategic Studies (2021). The Military Balance. p. 461. ISBN 9781032012278.
^ "UPAYA PEMANFAATAN KEMBALI SISTA RL ARMED 130 MM – Ditpal-tniad.mil.id". Ditpal-tniad.mil.id. Archived from the original on 27 September 2018. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
^ [1]
^ Artileria română în date și imagini, p. 136
^ Janes.com

Christopher Chant, A compendium of armaments and military hardware, Routledge, 1987, ISBN 0-7102-0720-4
Christopher F. Foss, Artillery of the World, ISBN 0-7110-0505-2
Franklin D. Margiotta, Brassey's encyclopedia of land forces and warfare, Brassey's, 1996, ISBN 1-57488-087-X
Stroea, Adrian, col. conf. univ. dr., Băjenaru, Gheorghe, lt. col, Artileria română în date și imagini, Editura Centrului Tehnic-Editorial al Armatei, București, 2010, ISBN 978-606-524-080-3